Knife sharpener



' July 15, 1941; A. E. MEADE ETAL KNIFE SHARPENER Filed March 8, 1959 2 Sheets-Sheet l I I I I I If I igZ/edc/e I fie ZaxZLSZMedQ e flgidf July 15, 1941.

A. E. MEADE ET AL KNIFE SHARP-ENER Filed March 8, 11939 I 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 I ZZZ/52223715 2428 2262/7165 f7fagarez wa.

flaw? Patented July 15, 1941 KNIFE SHARPENER Alexis E. Meade and' Margaret L. Meade, Lakewood, Ohio Application March 8, 1939, Serial No. 260,581

Ill-Claims. ((151-214) I This invention relates to sharpening devices designed for sharpening or honing the cutting edge of a knife or like implement, the particular operation depending upon the abrading element employed; and the invention is shown embodied L in a structure of thetype in which the knife is moved in the direction of its cutting'edge with respect to the sharpening or honing means for securing the desired abrasive or edge-straightening action.

One object of the invention is to provide a neat and simple portable knife sharpener suitable for household and like use, and particularly for keeping the usual supply of kitchen knives in proper working condition; Another objectis to provide a yielding mounting'for the abrasive sharpening members adapting them to be shifted readily upon introduction of the knife between them so that the sharpening action'mayjbe well distributed over the surfaces of I said members. Another object is to provide a novel method of so-called steeling or straightening the cutting edges of knives by employing smooth steelblocks in place of abrasive stones. A further object is to provide carrying means for the abrasive members designed to maintain them in fixed an gular relation to each otherthroughout their range of yieldingmovement, and'also to provide guiding means for holding the knife blade in proper relation to the abrading or honing members to insure the formation of a correct and uniform bevel at its'cutting edge. It is also an object of the invention to provide a design adapted for economical construction and assembly.

Other objects will appear asthedescription proceeds. l

The invention thus consists in certain features and elements of construction in-combination as herein shown and described and asindicated by the claims. 7

In the drawings: Fig. 1 is a perspective view showing the exterior of a knife sharpener embodying this invention and enclosed in a suitable casing.

Fig. 2 is a perspective view of the supporting Fig. 6 is a perspective view of a cooperating abrading member.

Fig. 7 is a vertical section similar toFig. 4, but looking in the opposite direction, and including a face view of the abrading member of Fig. 6, together with its holder.

Fig. 8 is a perspective view of the holder shown in Fig. 7. v

Fig. 9 is a plan section taken just above the mechanism within the casing.

- Fig. 10 is a top plan view showing the sharpe ener in the position of use, and indicating the function of the guard flanges for protecting the fingers from the knife blade which is being sharpened. I

V Fig. 11 is a perspective view similar v to Fig.2,

but showing a modified arrangement of abrading members.

Fig; 12 is a perspective view of one of the abrading members of the mechanism shown in Fig; 11.

Fig. 13 is a vertical section showing one set of; abrading members and their supporting Referring first to Fig. 2, it may be understood that the sharpening device of this invention com prises abrading stones or holders disposed atan angle to each other and in somewhat interlapping relation, so that a knife blade may be introduced edgewise into thefangular gap between the abrading stones, and. may then be reciprocated in the directionofitscutting edge with some, vertical movement in its own plane. to

securethe sharpening effect. In the form. of the device illustrated in Figs. 1 to 10, one pair of abrading stones l and 2 is supported in a. holder 3 which may be constructed of bent sheet metal, and which is carried by a pair of parallel links 4 ,.4. A cooperating abrading stone ,5 extends at an angle to the stones l and 2 and is interlapped with them, being supported by a holder 6,. preferably of bent sheet metal, which is. car? ried by parallel links 1, l. The links .4 and l are formed with crankedv end portion swhich engage pivot apertures 8 in a supporting shell, which may also be formed of sheet metal, and which, as shown, consists of a bottom wall 9,

. holder 6.

The holders 3 and 6, with their abrading members, are urged toward each other yieldingly by coil springs l4, each reacting between the back of the holder and the inner surface of the adjacent end wall IQ of the shell. A lug l5,

bent out of the end wall, serves to anchor the base of the spring l4, and the opposite end of the spring is coiled about a centering lug Hi,

projecting from the back of the holder (see Figs. 4 and 8). The arms of the two links 4, 4 and, similarly, the arms of the two links 1, I, are parallel to each other, so that any movement of either holder 3 or 6 toward or from the end wall In of the shell, takes place under control of these parallel links or cranks, with the result that the abrading members are maintained at all times at positions parallel to their initial positions. Thus, as the abrading stones land 2 on the carrier or holder 3, and the stone 5 on the other holder 6, are forced apart by the in-' sertion of a knife blade between them, the stones maintain their original angular relation to each other, with the result that a definite angle of bevel is produced at the cutting edge of the knife. At the same time, the yielding movements of the abrading stones on their holders are easy swinging movements.

And a further advantage of the parallel link mounting of the stones is secured by arranging these parallel links or hangers 4 and I, so that they initially extend obliquely upward from their pivot bearings 8; thus, when the abrading stones are forced back toward the end walls [0 of the shell, they are simultaneously swung upwardly in arcs controlled by the links 4 and I, and this movement, combined with the reciprocation of the knife blade in its own plane, produces an effective honing action which very rap idly results in akeen edge on the blade.

To secure full advantage of the maintenance of a uniform angle between the abrading stones of the sharpener mechanism, the enclosing case 20, shown in Figs. 1, 9 and 10, includes a central vertical slot 2!, which serves as a guide for the blade of the knife, and maintains it in a vertical plane bisecting the angle between the working faces of the abrading stones l, 2 and 5. Thus, the faces of the knife blade are prevented from becoming scratched by the abrasive material, and if the casing is molded of plastic material, such as Bakelite." the blade will not be marred by its contact with the edges .of the slot 2|. Preferably, the external faces of the casing 2!! are designed with corrugations 22, which afford convenient gripping surfaces; and at opposite sides of the slot 2! the casing includes guard flanges 23, which extend in posi tion to protect the thumb and fingers of the hand which holds the casing steady while the device is in use. This relation i indicated clearly in Fig. 10, which shows a plan view of the device with the casin being held by the fingers of the left-hand, while the knife blade is positioned in the slot 2!, so as to be reciprocated therein by the right-hand. The guard flanges 23 prevent the thumb and fingers from grasping the casing too close to slot 21. At the same time, the two guard flanges at each side of the casing are set far enough apart to permit the handle portion SI of the knife to approach as closely as possible to the outer wall of the casing 20, adjacent the slot 2!.

In order to secure abrasive action of the stones against the cutting edge of the knife as close to the hilt or handle as possible, it is necessary to have the abrading surfaces extend closely proximate to the inner faces of the confining walls of the casing. In the structure shown in Figs. 1- to 10, this is accomplished by employing stones of T-shaped cross-section, so that the lugs ll of the holder 3 and the lugs l8 of the holder 6 may embrace the stem portion of the T-shaped stones, allowing the broader portions, which include the abrading surfaces, to project laterally beyond the outlines of the holders, and thus to extend as close as possible to the inner surfaces of the casing walls, with safe working clearance.

The lugs l1 and. I8, being bent from a sheet metal blank, may be slightly sprung so as to engage frictionally with the surfaces of the stones I, 2 and 5, and the abrasive nature of these surfaces will ordinarily furnish sufficient friction to insure their retention by the holders. However, 'as a further precaution to prevent the stones from dropping out of place when the device is moved about or laid away in a drawer, the stem portions of their T-shaped cross-section maybe formed with grooves, as seen at [9, and the extremities of the lugs l1 and i8 may be slightly in'turned, as at 24, to interlock with the grooves l9 when the stones are slid into position in the holders. And, to further position the stones definitely, the holder 3 is formed with foot flanges 25, and the holder 6 has a similar footjfiange 26, to engage the lower ends of the stones Q To define'the initial positions of the abrading members so that they shall form a V-shaped opening incorrect registration with the slot 2i of the casing, their initial positions are limited by stop lugs '21, struck up from the bottom wall 9 of the shell, as seen in Fig. 2, and, if desired, the carriers 3 and 6 may be so designed that the lower edge portion 3 (see Fig. 5) simultaneously contacts the face of'the single stone 5, while the lower edges 6 of the cross-bar portion fromwhich lugs [3 are formed (see Fig. 8) engage the faces of the two stones l and 2, thus supplementing the stop lugs 21 and serving in conjunction with stops 2! to maintain correct registration of both sets of stones with the central guide slot 2| as the working faces of the stones wear down; the springs l4 thus urge the stones into contact with the stops 2! until, upon introduction of the knife blade between them, they are forced back in opposition to the spring pressure. If the knife blade should be carried downwardly past the lower ends of the abrading members, its cutting edge may contact, withoutinjury, a block 28 of hard wood or lead, or other suitable substance, held in position between the stop lugs 21 and flanges 29, turned up from the edges of the bottom wall 9 of the shell.

To provide for altering the angle between the abrasive members so as to produce a different bevel, if desired, at the cutting edge of the knife blade, the flanges ll of the shell may be furnished with supplemental pivot holes 8*, as shown in Fig. 2. Thus, by shifting the upper link 4 and the upper link 1 into the holes 8 the stones will-be tilted apart ata wider angle; or, by shifting the lower links 4 and 1 into the pivot holes 8 the angle between the abrading members will be made more acute. It should be understood that the supplemental pivot holes 8 will be so placed as to maintain the parallelism of the links I, I with each other, and of the links 4, 4 with each other, so' that the initial angle between the stones will be maintained throughout their yielding movements as the knife blade is reciprocated between them. The mechanism may be secured in the outer casing by providing the shell with lugs 35, apertured to receive fastening screws which will enter suitable tapped holes in the bottom of the casing 29. This will render the mechanism readily removable from the easing for the purpose of adjusting the links to alter the angle of operation, or for replacing the 'abrading members I, 2 or when they become unduly worn.

Figs. 11 to 15 illustrate a sharpener embodying the same general principles as that already described, but designed to afford a larger abrasive surface suitable for use with large butcher knives and carving tools, such as those employed in hotels and restaurants. The sheet metal shell for the mechanism is substantially like that shownin Fig. 2, and includes end walls and side flanges 5!, in which the swinging links 52 are pivoted to support the holders 53 and 54 for the abrading members. The latter comprise three narrow stones 55, 56 and 51, carried on the holder 54, and two additional stones 58, supported on the holder 53. As seen in Fig. 13, the middle stone, 56, on the holder 54, is full length, but the other two stones, 55 and 51, are only half-length. The lower portions 58 of the stones 58 are more than double width, while the upper portions are substantially similar in width to the stones 55, 56 and 51, and intermember with the latter. The stones 55 and 51 are only half-length, so that they register above the broad portions 58 of the stones 58, in the initial position of the parts, as shown in Fig. 11. Thus, as the knife blade enters between the abrading members, it is engaged by three stones on the one side and two on the opposite side. But as it passes downward between the stones, this relation is reversed, so that in the lower portion of the mechanism the side of the blade which initially engaged the three narrow stones55, 56

and 51 is engaged by only one of them, the stone 55, while the opposite side is acted upon by the broader abrading surfaces 58 of the two stones 58. And it may be understood that the relative areas and widths of the several stones may be varied from the proportions illustrated SOI as to accomplish an approximate equalization in the working surfaces which act on opposite sides of the knife blade if it is operated against both upper and lower areas of all the stones. In

other words, the middle stone, 55, maybe made somewhat broader than shown. v

Another important advantage of the arrangement of stones shown in Figs. 11 to 15 isthat the half-length stones 55 and 57, occupying spaces above the broad portions 58 of the stones r 58, are those disposed closely adjacent the walls of the casing. Thus, at each reciprocation of the knife blade between the stones the abrasive members act upon both sides of the blade at the cutting edge and as close to the hilt or handle permit.

as the thickness of the sharpener casing will Another feature of the modified structure of Figs. 11 to 15, is that the stones are formed with recesses 59, to receive the lugs 60 of the holders 53 and 54. Thus, the lugs fit substantially flush in the lateral faces of the stones, permitting the abrasive surfaces to extend very close to the inner walls of the enclosing casing' (not shown). This relation is readily observable in Figs. 13 and 15, which indicate that the abrasive surfaces extend substantially to the planes of the side flanges 5| of the shell which supports the mechanism. In view of the fact that the lugs 50 fit snugly in the recesses 59, it is not necessary to provide foot flanges to support the stones in position on their holders.

It will be understood that the holders 53 and 54 may beformed of sheet metal, and are so illustrated, and that they include tubular bearings 52 for the links 52. These bearing sleeves or tubes 62 stop short of the lateral margins'of the holders, so that the arms of the links 52 may be accommodated within the width of the abrasive surfaces, as indicated clearly in. Figs. 13 and 15. And in this construction, as in the other, the abrading members are urged toward each other yieldingly by coil springs seen at 53.

Thus, either of the mechanisms herein shown and described provides a convenient and efiicient device forquickly putting a keen cutting edge on a knife blade. Preferably, the abrading members will be moistened with water just before use, and this can be done conveniently by holding the slot 2| of the device under a water faucet. 'The openings 9 in the bottom wall (see Fig. 2) which are formed by striking up the lugs 21, will permit the excess Water to drain 01f promptly. With the smaller mechanism illustrated in Fig. 2 the design of the stones 1, 2 and 5 may be such that the effective working face of the stone 5 is substantially equivalent to that of the two stones 1 and 2, so that both faces of the knife blade receive substantially equal treatment. However, ifit is found preferable to make all three stones of the same width, the operation may be approximately equalized by turning the mechanism around at intervals so as to pass the knife through the slot 2|, first from one side and then from the other side of the casing.

For putting a keen finish on a knife edge it is usually desirable to employ a' hone or a steel.

the device of Figs. 1 to 10, and these elements may be slipped into the holders or carriers 3 and 6 in place of the abrasive elements I, '2 and 5. The working faces of the members 10 are shown as convex, and, if desired, they may be finely milled or grooved like thesurface of a steel commonly employed for sharpening carving knives and the like, Or, to avoid the-inconvenience of taking out the stones and replacing them with the honing members, a second device may be kept at hand, fitted with honing mem- I bers 7! for the final steeling and straighten ing of the cutting edge.

While there is shown and described herein certain specific structure embodying the invention, it will be manifest to those skilled in the art that various modifications and re-arrangements of the parts may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention, and that the same is not-limited to the particular form herein shown and described; except in so far as indicated by the appended claims.

We claim:

1. In a knife sharpener which includes a pair of carriers, abrading members on said carriers disposed respectively with their working faces in planes which intersect at an acute angle, a supporting base and a pair of parallel swinging links connecting each carrier to said base, the links of each pair being of equal length, whereby the abrading means on each carrier may be shifted transversely of its working face but maintained with said face always parallel to its initial position.

2. In a knife sharpener which includes a pair of carriers, abrading means on said carriers disposed respectively with their working faces in planes which intersect at an acute angle, a supporting base and a pair of parallel swinging links connecting each carrier to said base, the links of each pair being of equal length, and spring means urging the carriers toward each other to maintain contact of the abrading means with opposite sides of a knife blade inserted between them.

3. In a knife sharpener which includes a pair of carriers, abrading members on said carriers disposed respectively with their working faces in planes which intersect at an acute angle, a supporting base and a pair of parallel swinging links connecting each carrier to said base, the links of each pair being of equal length, the said planes of the working faces of said abrading means extending divergently upward from their line of intersection, and the links of each carrier extending obliquely upward from their pivotal connections with the base, whereby the abrading means move upwardly as they are forced apart by the introduction of a knife blade between their divergent working faces.

4. In a knife sharpener which includes a pair of carriers, abrading members on said carriers disposed respectively with their working faces in planes which intersect at an. acute angle, a supporting base and apair of parallel swinging links connecting each carrier to said base, the links of each pair being of equal length, and means providing for the shifting of the pivotal connections of said links to the base for altering the angle at which the planes of said working faces intersect.

5. In a knife sharpener which includes a pair of carriers, abrading members on said carriers disposed respectively with their working faces in planes which intersect at an acute angle, a supporting base and a pair of parallel swinging links connecting each carrier to said base, the links of each pair being of equal length, and means forming a guide slot for the blade to be sharpened, said slot extending in a plane which substantially bisects the angle between said planes of the working faces.

6. In a knife sharpener which includes a pair of carriers, abrading members on said carriers respectively disposed with their working faces in planes which intersect at an acute angle, spring means urging the carriers toward each other to maintain contact of said abrading members with opposite sides of a knife blade inserted between them, and guiding means controlling the movement of both carriers and maintaining the angular relation between working faces of the abrading members as the latter are forced apart by the introduction of a knife blade between them, together with a housing which encloses the abrading members and their carriers, said housing having a guide slot for the blade to be sharpened disposed in a plane between the planes of the working faces of said abrading members, I

and said housing having guard flanges projecting exteriorly thereof adjacent the guide slot and vertically co-extensive with the slot. 7

'7. In a knife sharpener which includes a pair of carriers, abrading members on said carriers respectively disposed with their working faces in planes which intersect at an acute angle, spring means urging the carriers toward each other to maintain contact of said abrading members with opposite sides of a knife blade inserted between them, and guiding means controlling the movement of both carriers and maintaining the angular relation between working faces of the abrading members as the latter are forced apart by the introduction and reciprocation of a knife blade between them, the working faces of the abrading members on both carriers extending to the same vertical plane transverse to thedirection of reciprocation of the blade for acting upon both sides of the knife blade to the same point in its length.

8, In a knife sharpener which includes a pair of carriers, abrading members on said carriers respectively disposed with their working faces in planes which intersect at an acute angle, spring means urging the carriers toward each other to maintain contact of said abrading members with opposite sides of a knife blade inserted between them, and guiding means controlling the movement of both carriers and maintaining the angular relation between working faces of the abrading members as the latter are forced apart by the introduction and reciprocation of a knife blade between them, said working faces of the abrading members on both carriers extending to the same vertical plane transverse to the direction of reciprocation of the blade at the lateral margins of said working faces, and the marginal portion of an abrading member on one carrier being registered above the marginal portion of an abrading member on the other carrier to provide for abrasive action upon both sides of the knife blade at the same portion of its length when the blade is reciprocated and forced downwardly between the working faces.

9. In a knife sharpener which includes a pair of carriers, abrading members on said carriers respectively disposed with their working faces in planes which intersect at an acute angle, spring means urging the carriers toward each other to maintain contact of said abrading members with opposite sides of a knife blade inserted between them, and guiding means controlling the movement of both carriers and maintaining the angular relation between working faces of the abrading members as the latter are forced apart by the introduction and reciprocation of a knife blade between them, together with a casing enclosing the abrading members and their carriers and having a guide slot in its wall for supporting aknife blade in correct angular relation to the working faces, said faces of the abrading members on both carriers extending to the same vertical plane transverse to the direction of reciprocation of the blade for acting upon both sides of the knife blade to the same point in its length.

10. In a knife sharpener which includes a pair of carriers, abrading members on said carriers respectively disposed with their working faces in planes which intersect at an acute angle, spring means urging the carriers toward each other to bers, and stop means fixed relatively to said guide slot and positioned to engage portions of the working faces of the abrading members respectively and alter the limits of movement of the carriers toward each other in accordance with the wear of said portions of said workin faces.

ALEXIS E. MEADE. MARGARET L. MEADE. 

